Does respect for orders and laws justify the mass persecution of a race? Is protecting one's family a valid reason to tolerate the mistreatment of Jews? During the Nuremberg trials, judges ruled that simply following orders was a flimsy reason to condone the actions of many officials in Hitler's party. Although the leaders who ran the death camps and killed the Jews blamed their involvement on obeying instructions, half received the death sentence and the other half were sentenced to life in prison. The Nuremberg trials established “the idea that individuals are responsible for their own actions, even in times of war” (Danzer, 587). Similarly, in The Book Thief, author Markus Zusak emphasizes the responsibility of German citizens to denounce Hitler's actions towards the Jews. The protagonist Liesel learns to be kind towards Jews despite her community's negative view of them when her adoptive parents, Hans and Rosa Hubermann, shelter a Jew, Max, in their basement. Liesel forms a friendship with Max and bonds with him over their shared family loss. Max later leaves the Hubermanns to protect them after Hans publicly gives bread to a Jew on the street. In The Book Thief, Markus Zusak describes with his diction and using juxtapositions and metaphors the responsibility of a German citizen to protect Jews and how the failure to do so leads to devastating effects. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay At the beginning, the author uses juxtaposition to demonstrate the contrast between Germans who supported Hitler and those who disapproved of him and show each group's responsibility for the mistreatment of Jews. From the beginning of the novel Liesel struggles to understand Hitler, the Nazis, and her community's hatred of Jews. Two contradictory characters in her life are Frau Holtzapfel and Hans Hubermann. Zusak presents Liesel's neighbor, Frau Holtzapfel, as a devout member of the Nazi party with “a golden rule…if you went into her shop and didn't say 'heil Hitler' you wouldn't be served” (Zusak 49.50). In contrast, Liesel's father openly resists the Nazi Party. This is clear when Hans helps a Jew: after Nazi Party members paint a slur on the door of a Jewish shopkeeper, Hans approaches the owner and says "'I'll come tomorrow... and repaint your door,'" a promise which keeps (Zusak 181) . Furthermore, later in the book Hans attempts to help a Jew marching towards the Dachau death camp: “Hans Hubermann held out his hand and offered a piece of bread” (Zusak 394). The contrast between these two characters describes the undeniable division in German society during World War II. However, Zusak examines the integrity of both types of German citizens when the people of Molching hide in the bomb shelter fearfully “waiting for their end” by asking the reader, “Did they deserve better, these people?” (Zusak 375). The author chooses to create two very contrasting characters and throw them into the same life-threatening situation to force the reader to contemplate the responsibility of German citizens to speak out and protect Jews. Although 90% of Germans fully supported Hitler, those who disapproved of his methods often remained silent. Those who chose not to remain silent were punished. The author expresses the need for society to speak up when something is wrong, even if it is a smaller population. This is not the only time the author.